# The Snow Queen ❄️👸 Family-Friendly Winter Story

An episode of [Snuggle: Kids bedtime stories](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1714672018), 31 Dec 2023, 54 min.

Audio: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/62031741/fa77b969_712d_0ee3_3625_267ee15de22f.mp3

Gerda journeys to find a magical palace of ice in this sleepy retelling of Hans Christian Andersen's classic fairy tale, "The Snow Queen." Narrated by: Elizabeth Grace Written by: Shady Grove Oliver Welcome to Snuggle! The best kid's story-telling podcast. Enter a cozy world of imagination perfect for bedtime, quiet time, or any time you want to embark on an enchanting adventure. Learn more at slumberstudios.com/snuggle To enjoy ad-free listening and exclusive bonus episodes, start your 7-day free trial of Snuggle Premium: https://snuggle.supercast.com/ November only: try Premium free for 90 days. Ad-free listening and more at slumber.supercast.com

## Transcript

[0:04] Speaker 1: Welcome to snuggle cozy stories for kids. This episode is
[0:10] Speaker 1: called The Snow Queen. Hey friend, it's Tom here as usual,
[0:20] Speaker 1: and I'm so glad you chose to be here for
[0:23] Speaker 1: story time. In this episode, Elizabeth is here to read
[0:28] Speaker 1: us a cozy winter story based on a classic fairy tale.
[0:35] Speaker 1: It's about a girl who journeys to find a palace
[0:38] Speaker 1: of ice, and I think you're going to love it.
[0:44] Speaker 1: To prepare our minds so that they're ready to imagine
[0:48] Speaker 1: this story, let's take a nice relaxing breath together, so
[0:56] Speaker 1: breathe in fully and gently exhale back out. Wonderful, You're
[1:09] Speaker 1: getting really good at that. Now, Picture in your mind
[1:15] Speaker 1: a land covered in ice and snow. It's nighttime, and
[1:22] Speaker 1: the light of the moon casts a warm glow across
[1:26] Speaker 1: the frozen ground. This is where our story begins.
[1:45] Speaker 2: Once upon a time, in a palace of ice, there
[1:51] Speaker 2: lived a queen. She had hair as white as snow
[1:59] Speaker 2: and a dress made of moonlight. Her eyelashes were rimmed
[2:08] Speaker 2: with frost, and everywhere she went a flurry of snowflakes
[2:17] Speaker 2: swalled about her. Few had ever seen her palace, which
[2:26] Speaker 2: was tucked away in the northern lands, at the edge
[2:33] Speaker 2: of a frigid glacierd But they had all heard the
[2:39] Speaker 2: stories of how to find it. In hushed voices, they
[2:47] Speaker 2: told the tale of the Snow Queen around campfires late
[2:54] Speaker 2: at night. Just follow the northern lights, they said, Watch
[3:03] Speaker 2: them crackle above your head as they shift from green
[3:11] Speaker 2: to purple to blue. The most brilliant blue lights always
[3:21] Speaker 2: shimmer in the sky above her palace. That is how
[3:28] Speaker 2: you will find it, they would say. But many of
[3:34] Speaker 2: the things people said about the Snow Queen were not true.
[3:41] Speaker 2: She did not turn people's hearts to ice, nor freeze
[3:47] Speaker 2: them where they stood. However, what they said about the
[3:53] Speaker 2: lights was true. The most wondrous auroras shone above her
[4:01] Speaker 2: castle like sapphire waves crashing against a wintry shore. At night,
[4:14] Speaker 2: she liked to walk outside in her courtyard and look
[4:20] Speaker 2: into the sky. Great curtains of color moved and shifted,
[4:30] Speaker 2: sending ripples of electric blue across the horizon. They reflected
[4:39] Speaker 2: in her icy eyes as snowflakes flurried around her. Most
[4:49] Speaker 2: of the time, the Snow Queen was content to stay
[4:54] Speaker 2: in her palace, nasseled in its arctic landscape, just as
[5:03] Speaker 2: the tropical beaches were warm, the north was cold. Her
[5:10] Speaker 2: presence there did not shift the balance. But every year,
[5:18] Speaker 2: at the end of autumn, just as the leaves were
[5:23] Speaker 2: falling from the trees, the snow Queen made her journey
[5:30] Speaker 2: around the earth. In her crystal sleigh. She flew across
[5:39] Speaker 2: the jet black sky, with stars twinkling overhead. She glided
[5:50] Speaker 2: down winter trails and walked the path of the highest mountains,
[6:00] Speaker 2: leaving the ground frozen behind her. Down below, people could
[6:09] Speaker 2: see when the snow Queen had visited their lands. They
[6:16] Speaker 2: knew winter was on its way when they saw her
[6:22] Speaker 2: blanket a frost laying gently across their highest peaks. There
[6:33] Speaker 2: are cold days ahead, they'd say, lighting their campfires and
[6:41] Speaker 2: preparing for snow. She enjoyed her time in the southern lands.
[6:51] Speaker 2: She walked through villages and towns and smiled as children
[6:59] Speaker 2: had snowball fights in the squares. Sometimes she would stand
[7:07] Speaker 2: near the window of a cottage and watch families pile
[7:14] Speaker 2: logs in the fireplace and gather together over a hot meal.
[7:23] Speaker 2: As she looked in, her breath would touch the windows,
[7:29] Speaker 2: and before long, they too would be covered in a
[7:34] Speaker 2: fine layer of frost. The Snow Queen longed for an
[7:43] Speaker 2: evening by the fire, but more than anything, she longed
[7:50] Speaker 2: for people to share it with. It was a solitary life,
[7:58] Speaker 2: being the bringer winter, and after so many years, she
[8:06] Speaker 2: found that she was lonely. But she was also shy.
[8:16] Speaker 2: There were moments when someone would gaze out the window
[8:21] Speaker 2: of their home just as she was peering. In one
[8:29] Speaker 2: such time, it was the face of a young man
[8:34] Speaker 2: who looked back. He did not smile or wave. Instead,
[8:44] Speaker 2: he turned away, unsettled by the vision of a frozen
[8:50] Speaker 2: woman with snow white hair and ice blue eyes. On
[8:56] Speaker 2: the other side. He too had heard stories of the
[9:04] Speaker 2: snow Queen and did not want to find out if
[9:09] Speaker 2: they were true, and so she stayed in her palace
[9:18] Speaker 2: or walked the land alone. She avoided windows if she could,
[9:27] Speaker 2: and crept through the streets under the cover of darkness.
[9:36] Speaker 2: That is why people often awoke to find a fresh
[9:42] Speaker 2: layer of snow in the morning, having fallen the night
[9:48] Speaker 2: before from heavy skies. Yet she missed being able to
[9:56] Speaker 2: see the happiness that her winters brought to the people
[10:02] Speaker 2: in their homes. So one day she made a mirror
[10:10] Speaker 2: from the clearest ice. It was smooth and shiny, like glass,
[10:20] Speaker 2: and through it she could see any window she wished.
[10:28] Speaker 2: But like all mirrors, it could be dangerous. It was
[10:37] Speaker 2: easy to forget the world around her when something so
[10:42] Speaker 2: beautiful was right at her fingertips. So entranced by the
[10:52] Speaker 2: mirror was the Queen that she carried it wherever she went.
[11:00] Speaker 2: She brought it into her courtyard instead of looking at
[11:05] Speaker 2: the sky, and carried it as she walked across the land.
[11:14] Speaker 2: One evening, she climbed into her crystal sleigh and prepared
[11:22] Speaker 2: to venture herself. As she was soaring across the midnight sky,
[11:31] Speaker 2: the mirror of ice slipped from her grasp and fell
[11:39] Speaker 2: to the ground below. There it shattered into a million
[11:48] Speaker 2: tiny pieces. The pieces were so small they could not
[11:58] Speaker 2: be seen by the naked eye, but they were picked
[12:04] Speaker 2: up by the wind and carried in flurries of snow
[12:12] Speaker 2: across the land. One speck of the mirror, no bigger
[12:21] Speaker 2: than a piece of dust, landed in the eye of
[12:27] Speaker 2: a young man. His name was Kai, and he lived
[12:34] Speaker 2: in a village at the edge of the forest. He
[12:40] Speaker 2: was returning home from his evening walk by the river
[12:46] Speaker 2: with his best friend, Girder. A gust of wind rattled
[12:55] Speaker 2: the branches of the pine trees around them, and the
[13:00] Speaker 2: dry and powdery snow up from the ground. Gerda brushed
[13:10] Speaker 2: the snow from the front of her woolen dress, and
[13:16] Speaker 2: Kai rubbed his eye. In that moment, a thought came
[13:24] Speaker 2: into his mind. He remembered the time he'd seen the
[13:30] Speaker 2: strange frozen woman with the snow white hair and the
[13:37] Speaker 2: ice blue eyes standing outside his window. The image of
[13:47] Speaker 2: her face burned into his mind like magic. He could
[13:55] Speaker 2: hear the howling of winter winds and sea pillars of
[14:02] Speaker 2: blue light in the sky. Slowly, he blinked, not believing
[14:10] Speaker 2: what he'd seen, and as quickly as the visions had come,
[14:18] Speaker 2: they vanished once again into the night air. Gerda saw
[14:27] Speaker 2: her friend was distracted by something. She touched the arm
[14:33] Speaker 2: of his coat. What's wrong, she asked. It's nothing to
[14:41] Speaker 2: worry about, it, said Kai. I was just remembering something
[14:46] Speaker 2: I saw long ago. When they reached Gerda's house, the
[14:54] Speaker 2: friends said good night and parted ways. The next morning,
[15:03] Speaker 2: Kai woke up and found that the image of the
[15:08] Speaker 2: strange frozen woman lingered in his mind. He got dressed
[15:20] Speaker 2: and prepared to do his chores, but as the day
[15:25] Speaker 2: went on, the woman's face grew clearer, and at the
[15:32] Speaker 2: edge of his vision, he thought he saw flashes of
[15:37] Speaker 2: blue dancing across the sky. The days passed and winter
[15:48] Speaker 2: drew closer to the little village by the forest. Gerda
[15:55] Speaker 2: had known Ki since they were children, and she could
[16:01] Speaker 2: tell that something was bothering him. Every time she saw him,
[16:10] Speaker 2: he seemed more and more preoccupied, but no matter how
[16:19] Speaker 2: many questions she asked, he would not answer. It's nothing
[16:28] Speaker 2: to worry about, he said, again and again. One day,
[16:41] Speaker 2: Kai and Gerda were walking together by the river. Heavy
[16:49] Speaker 2: gray clouds hung overhead. The air was crisp, and a
[16:57] Speaker 2: fresh layer of frost had touched the ground the night before.
[17:05] Speaker 2: They were talking about fond memories from winter's past. When
[17:12] Speaker 2: Kai grew quiet, He turned his face to the sky
[17:20] Speaker 2: and his eyes opened wide. What is it? Gerda asked,
[17:30] Speaker 2: but Kai did not answer. He was lost in thought,
[17:37] Speaker 2: entranced by something only he could see. Around them, snow
[17:45] Speaker 2: began to fall in the distance. Gerda saw a flurry
[17:53] Speaker 2: of snowflakes swelling above the ground, turning and spinning in
[18:02] Speaker 2: the shape of a funnel. The outline of a woman
[18:09] Speaker 2: seemed to be standing in the center of it all.
[18:14] Speaker 2: Gerda could not make out her features, but the snowflakes
[18:21] Speaker 2: churned and gathered around her, as though suspended by unseen
[18:29] Speaker 2: winds or magic. Behind the woman, Gerda saw a beautiful
[18:41] Speaker 2: crystal sleigh resting softly on the powdery white ground. The
[18:52] Speaker 2: woman stepped into the sleigh as the snowflakes billowed around
[18:59] Speaker 2: her like a veil. Though it had no horse pulling
[19:05] Speaker 2: it forward, it made an arc as it turned to leave.
[19:15] Speaker 2: Before Gerda realized what was happening, Kai began to run.
[19:23] Speaker 2: He followed the sleigh as it disappeared into the forest.
[19:31] Speaker 2: Gerda called for him to come back, but Kai could
[19:36] Speaker 2: not hear her. He ran faster and faster until he
[19:45] Speaker 2: was out of sight. Kai felt the wind whip around
[19:54] Speaker 2: his face as he ran. Wait, he called to the
[20:01] Speaker 2: woman on the sleigh, please wait. It began to slow
[20:08] Speaker 2: up ahead. When he reached it, he recognized the frozen
[20:16] Speaker 2: woman with the icy blue eyes and snow white hair.
[20:24] Speaker 2: You're the one I saw outside my window all those
[20:28] Speaker 2: years ago, he said, And now I see you in
[20:35] Speaker 2: my dreams. Please let me come with you. The snow
[20:43] Speaker 2: queen realized what had happened. This must be the magic
[20:50] Speaker 2: of the shattered mirror at work entrancing this man, so
[20:57] Speaker 2: all he saw was half face looking back at him
[21:03] Speaker 2: as she had once done. She shook her head. You
[21:10] Speaker 2: cannot come with me, she said. My palace is no
[21:16] Speaker 2: place for ordinary people. You belong here with your friends
[21:25] Speaker 2: in your village. Kai frowned. But all I can think
[21:32] Speaker 2: of is you and winter and the blue lights in
[21:38] Speaker 2: the sky. He said, you must let me come with you.
[21:46] Speaker 2: The snow Queen paused and thought she couldn't leave this
[21:53] Speaker 2: man out here on his own, so deep in the forest.
[22:00] Speaker 2: Had a warm blanket on the seat beside her, though,
[22:05] Speaker 2: and because of her mistake, she felt he was now
[22:11] Speaker 2: her responsibility. You may stay with me, she told him,
[22:20] Speaker 2: but only until we can find a way to fix this.
[22:27] Speaker 2: Kai stepped into the sleigh, and the snow Queen wrapped
[22:33] Speaker 2: the blanket around his shoulders. She had made the mirror
[22:41] Speaker 2: from the ice at her palace. Perhaps she could find
[22:46] Speaker 2: a solution there. With a flick of her hand, the
[22:52] Speaker 2: sleigh jumped into the air, higher and higher its sword,
[23:00] Speaker 2: until it floated above the clouds in the sky. They
[23:08] Speaker 2: headed north. Kai watched the forest fly past below them.
[23:17] Speaker 2: They soared over mountaintops and the frigid expanse of frozen tundra.
[23:27] Speaker 2: They flew as day turned to night around them, Magnificent
[23:37] Speaker 2: waves of color rippled across the dark sky as the
[23:44] Speaker 2: stars glittered overhead. Back at home, Gerda sat on her
[23:54] Speaker 2: bed with her head in her hands. Kai was gone,
[24:02] Speaker 2: and Gerda believed she knew who was responsible. Like him,
[24:12] Speaker 2: She had grown up hearing the tails of the snow Queen,
[24:18] Speaker 2: the woman whose touch could turn a heart cold and
[24:25] Speaker 2: leave a person frozen where they stood. It was said
[24:32] Speaker 2: she traveled on a crystal sleigh and could be seen
[24:38] Speaker 2: in the places the snowflakes gathered. When a window frosted
[24:46] Speaker 2: from the corners inward. That was the breath of the
[24:51] Speaker 2: snow Queen. As she stood outside, watching and waiting. Now
[25:03] Speaker 2: Kai was with her. Most likely she had taken him
[25:08] Speaker 2: to her icy palace in the northern Lands. Gerda sat
[25:16] Speaker 2: up straight, a determined look upon her face. It was
[25:24] Speaker 2: up to her to rescue him. She packed a bag
[25:31] Speaker 2: with warm clothes and food. She made a thermos of
[25:37] Speaker 2: hot tea and pulled her snow shoes down from the wall.
[25:46] Speaker 2: Gerda spun a length of twine around her skis and
[25:52] Speaker 2: fastened them across her back, one over the other, and
[26:00] Speaker 2: then she headed out into the dark and cold night.
[26:10] Speaker 2: Gerda walked for miles and miles. She started down a
[26:18] Speaker 2: trail she knew well until she reached the river. She
[26:26] Speaker 2: followed it by moonlight along its twists and turns, until
[26:33] Speaker 2: the morning sun began to glow on the horizon. Up ahead,
[26:42] Speaker 2: she saw a shimmering in the air, like a veil
[26:47] Speaker 2: of golden lace pulled across her view. How strange, Gerda thought.
[26:58] Speaker 2: She walked up to the mirage and watched as it
[27:03] Speaker 2: sparkled in the dim light. She reached out her hands, and,
[27:12] Speaker 2: finding no barrier to keep her from passing, walked through it.
[27:21] Speaker 2: On the other side, Gerda found herself in a paradise
[27:27] Speaker 2: of summer. There was no snow upon the ground and
[27:34] Speaker 2: no icicles hanging from the trees. Butterflies hovered over flowers
[27:43] Speaker 2: bursting with nectar, and birds chittered happily from their perches.
[27:53] Speaker 2: The same river flowed through this magical place, but here
[28:02] Speaker 2: it shined a warm gold and burbled slowly like a
[28:09] Speaker 2: lazy stream. Gerda kneeled beside it and cupped her hands
[28:19] Speaker 2: into the water. She took a sip and then another,
[28:27] Speaker 2: Feeling refreshed as it trickled down her throat, she set
[28:36] Speaker 2: down her pack and took her skis off her back.
[28:43] Speaker 2: She slipped off the snow shoes and leaned them against
[28:49] Speaker 2: a moss covered rock. She unfurled her blanket and laid
[28:58] Speaker 2: down on the ground. I'll just rest here a while,
[29:05] Speaker 2: she told the birds, until I feel strong enough to continue.
[29:14] Speaker 2: She didn't know how long she slept. The sun rose
[29:21] Speaker 2: and said, but Gerda did not stir. When she finally awoke,
[29:30] Speaker 2: she thought that only a few hours had gone by.
[29:37] Speaker 2: She stayed one day, and then one more. Time seemed
[29:45] Speaker 2: to move differently in this paradise. She thought days turned tonight,
[29:55] Speaker 2: and then nights turned today, and soon Gerda had almost
[30:02] Speaker 2: forgotten why she'd come here. In the back of her mind,
[30:10] Speaker 2: she remembered something about a young man and a queen,
[30:16] Speaker 2: but they were more like hazy memories. Now. Gerda was
[30:23] Speaker 2: sipping from the stream when she heard a loud core
[30:28] Speaker 2: from above. She saw a raven sitting on a branch. Hello,
[30:38] Speaker 2: she said to the large black bird, I've been watching you.
[30:46] Speaker 2: The bird replied, shouldn't you be on your way to
[30:51] Speaker 2: find your friend, my friend, Gerda asked him, Confused, she
[31:01] Speaker 2: could not remember a friend. The raven knew the magic
[31:08] Speaker 2: of this place. If people weren't careful, they could become
[31:14] Speaker 2: trapped in its thrall. The promise of endless summer was enchanting, indeed,
[31:23] Speaker 2: but it was not real. He had flown here from
[31:28] Speaker 2: the village and had seen the young man and the
[31:33] Speaker 2: snow queen ride off into the night. He watched Gerda
[31:41] Speaker 2: pack her bags and trudge through the snow in search
[31:47] Speaker 2: of her friend. You must remember, the raven called down
[31:54] Speaker 2: to her. Think hard, Think of the snow Queen, Think
[32:04] Speaker 2: of Kai. At the mention of his name, her memories
[32:12] Speaker 2: flooded back. How long had she been here in this
[32:18] Speaker 2: strange and mysterious place. Quickly she packed up her things.
[32:28] Speaker 2: Thank you for reminding me, she told the bird. How
[32:34] Speaker 2: may I repay you for this kindness? The raven said
[32:40] Speaker 2: he was flying north anyway, and if she didn't mind,
[32:46] Speaker 2: he'd like to join her on her journey. Gerda welcomed
[32:52] Speaker 2: the company. It was nice to have someone to talk to,
[32:59] Speaker 2: and she thought it could be handy to have a
[33:03] Speaker 2: raven along in case she encountered any more unexpected magic. Together,
[33:14] Speaker 2: Gerda and the raven left the enchanted place behind and
[33:21] Speaker 2: entered back into the cold. They pushed through snow drifts
[33:28] Speaker 2: and over hills. They walked down valleys and followed winding
[33:36] Speaker 2: paths through dark woods. As night was falling, they needed
[33:45] Speaker 2: to find somewhere to rest. In the distance, the raven
[33:52] Speaker 2: spotted a castle on a moor. They trudged across the
[33:59] Speaker 2: sodden ground, where ice crystals formed between patches of moss.
[34:09] Speaker 2: They reached the castle just as the moon began to
[34:13] Speaker 2: rise in the sky. Its walls were cracked with age
[34:21] Speaker 2: and the steps had begun to crumble, but the roof
[34:27] Speaker 2: was intact and they could build a fire. It would
[34:33] Speaker 2: be a warm place to sleep for the night. Gerda
[34:40] Speaker 2: rolled out her blanket on the ground and watched logs
[34:46] Speaker 2: hiss and pop in the grand stone fireplace. The raven
[34:56] Speaker 2: took a perch on the back of a chair. Soon
[35:02] Speaker 2: their eyes grew heavy with sleep, and they both drifted
[35:09] Speaker 2: off into dreams. In her mind's eye, Gerda saw blue
[35:21] Speaker 2: lights tracing a path across the sky, shifting and shimmering
[35:30] Speaker 2: as they pointed the way to a great palace made
[35:36] Speaker 2: of ice. She saw the snow Queen sitting atop her
[35:44] Speaker 2: glacial throne, and Kai resting below her on a blanket.
[35:53] Speaker 2: She could not hear what they spoke of, but she
[35:58] Speaker 2: saw that Ki looked cold. He was wrapped in furs
[36:07] Speaker 2: and coats. But the palace was no place for an
[36:13] Speaker 2: ordinary man. The raven dreamt of soaring across the sky
[36:24] Speaker 2: among the crackling curtains of blue light, and then of
[36:32] Speaker 2: circling the icy palace with outstretched wings, carrying him on
[36:40] Speaker 2: the air currents. They did not know how long they slumbered.
[36:51] Speaker 2: Once again, time passed as Girder and the raven were
[36:58] Speaker 2: lost in vision, for this was a castle of dreams,
[37:07] Speaker 2: where magic ruled the day and night. Outside, alone, reindeer
[37:18] Speaker 2: grazed on the moor. He did not dare approach the castle,
[37:26] Speaker 2: for he knew about the enchantment that lay upon it.
[37:33] Speaker 2: But he'd seen the young woman and the raven venture inside.
[37:41] Speaker 2: They had been there asleep for many nights. He had
[37:49] Speaker 2: heard them speaking of a man and the snow queen
[37:54] Speaker 2: as they walked across the moor the evening they arrived.
[38:02] Speaker 2: They were on some kind of quest, he thought. The
[38:08] Speaker 2: reindeer sighed he would have to wake them up. Slowly,
[38:18] Speaker 2: he made his way to the castle and carefully plodded
[38:24] Speaker 2: up the crumbling stairs. Inside, the woman slept on a
[38:34] Speaker 2: blanket by the ashes of the fire, which had gone
[38:39] Speaker 2: out many days ago. The raven was perched on a chair,
[38:48] Speaker 2: his little head bobbing up and down with every breath.
[38:57] Speaker 2: The reindeer walked over to the woman and nudged her
[39:03] Speaker 2: softly with his nose. He chuffed in her ear and
[39:10] Speaker 2: tousled her hair. She blinked and rubbed her eyes. How
[39:19] Speaker 2: long have I been asleep, she asked him, For many
[39:25] Speaker 2: days and many nights. The reindeer said, You've fallen asleep
[39:34] Speaker 2: in a magical place, the castle of dreams. Oh dear
[39:43] Speaker 2: Gerda thought, and poor Kai was in the snow queen's palace,
[39:50] Speaker 2: all alone in the northern lands. She stood up and
[39:57] Speaker 2: went over to the raven, gently stroking his feathers. He
[40:05] Speaker 2: cawed as he awoke. Thank you for saving us from
[40:12] Speaker 2: this castle of dreams, he said to the reindeer, How
[40:18] Speaker 2: can we ever repay you? But the reindeer wanted nothing
[40:26] Speaker 2: in return. He was already heading north and only asked
[40:33] Speaker 2: if he might accompany them on their journey. They welcomed
[40:40] Speaker 2: him warmly. It was always better to have more friends together.
[40:50] Speaker 2: The three left the enchanted castle behind. They wandered over
[40:58] Speaker 2: the frozen ground and up the peaks of the highest mountains,
[41:06] Speaker 2: and then they descended once again into valleys filled with snow.
[41:16] Speaker 2: They walked further and further north until the ground grew
[41:23] Speaker 2: flatter and the sky stretched across the horizon. Here the
[41:33] Speaker 2: midday light was only a faded pastel pink with wisps
[41:41] Speaker 2: of peach and lilac. The sun no longer peaked above
[41:48] Speaker 2: the horizon. They traveled even farther north to a place
[41:57] Speaker 2: where twilight graced the skies for just minutes every day,
[42:06] Speaker 2: And then they walked together in a perpetual night. The
[42:14] Speaker 2: land glowed brightly beneath the moon and stars. Fierce streaks
[42:23] Speaker 2: of green and purple cascaded across the depths of the sky.
[42:32] Speaker 2: It was more beautiful here than anywhere Gerda had ever seen.
[42:41] Speaker 2: She gazed all struck at the open sky. But for
[42:49] Speaker 2: the raven and the reindeer the sight was more familiar.
[42:56] Speaker 2: They were both heading north because this was their home.
[43:04] Speaker 2: When they grew tired of walking, they slept where they could.
[43:12] Speaker 2: Sometimes they would find a rocky cove to lay down in,
[43:18] Speaker 2: or spend a night in a kindly stranger's barn. This
[43:26] Speaker 2: night they came upon a little hut at the edge
[43:32] Speaker 2: of a long, jagged glacier. They would brave that journey.
[43:39] Speaker 2: In the morning, Gerda knocked on the door, and an
[43:47] Speaker 2: old woman answered, come in, Come in. She told the three,
[43:56] Speaker 2: make yourself at home. A second woman heated water in
[44:04] Speaker 2: a kettle over a modest fire. She asked what brought
[44:10] Speaker 2: them so far north in the coldest month of the year.
[44:18] Speaker 2: Gerda told her they were trying to find the snow
[44:22] Speaker 2: Queen's palace. The woman nodded. It was not far from here,
[44:32] Speaker 2: just across the glacier, But she warned the path was
[44:38] Speaker 2: even colder than any they'd taken so far. It's not
[44:45] Speaker 2: a place for ordinary people, the old woman told Gerda.
[44:54] Speaker 2: The reindeer considered her words. He was no ordinary person,
[45:01] Speaker 2: but a creature of this vast and frozen land. How
[45:08] Speaker 2: many times had he crossed the tundra beneath the light
[45:14] Speaker 2: of the winter moon. I will carry you there, he said.
[45:22] Speaker 2: You will be safe and warm if you ride upon
[45:26] Speaker 2: my back. Gerda nodded. It was a good plan. You
[45:35] Speaker 2: will stay with us tonight and then leave first thing
[45:41] Speaker 2: in the morning. The old woman said. She prepared some
[45:49] Speaker 2: straw in the corner for the reindeer. Gerda laid her
[45:54] Speaker 2: blanket out beside him. The raven perched on the back
[46:01] Speaker 2: of a chair. Soon the others fell asleep, but the
[46:08] Speaker 2: ravens stayed up and whispered quietly with the two women
[46:15] Speaker 2: until morning. The next day, the little group left the hut.
[46:25] Speaker 2: The women wished them well and gave them a final
[46:30] Speaker 2: piece of advice. Follow the northern lights until they glow
[46:38] Speaker 2: sapphire in the sky above. They said, there you'll find
[46:46] Speaker 2: the palace of the snow Queen. Gerda climbed up onto
[46:54] Speaker 2: the reindeer's shaggy back. His fur was warm, and the
[47:01] Speaker 2: riot was smooth. The raven perched on her shoulder, and
[47:09] Speaker 2: together they crossed the long and craggy glacier. Above their heads,
[47:19] Speaker 2: the streaks of green and purple began to fade in
[47:26] Speaker 2: their place. Great waves of blue crashed against the velvet sky.
[47:37] Speaker 2: In the distance, they saw the palace made of ice.
[47:43] Speaker 2: The reindeer carried Girder up the frozen steps and into
[47:50] Speaker 2: the hall. The walls were clear, and glassy, frigid to
[47:59] Speaker 2: the touch. The floor was a foggy gray, but the
[48:07] Speaker 2: same deep cold as the rest of the castle. And
[48:14] Speaker 2: there in the middle of the great hall stood the
[48:20] Speaker 2: snow Queen's throne. She sat upon it with her icy
[48:28] Speaker 2: blue eyes and hair the color of snow. Kai lay
[48:37] Speaker 2: on a pile of warm blankets below her. His eyes
[48:43] Speaker 2: were closed. Gerda popped off the reindeer's back and ran
[48:52] Speaker 2: to her friend, brushing her fingertips against his cheek. His
[49:00] Speaker 2: skin was cool to the touch. The queen told Gerda
[49:08] Speaker 2: about her visits to the southern lands, about looking in
[49:14] Speaker 2: the windows of the village at the happy families within.
[49:22] Speaker 2: She told her about the mirror of ice, and how
[49:26] Speaker 2: it had fallen from her sleigh and shattered into a
[49:31] Speaker 2: million tiny pieces, and how a speck of mirror no
[49:39] Speaker 2: bigger than a grain of sand, had landed in Kay's eye.
[49:47] Speaker 2: Now all he could see was winter and snow. I
[49:54] Speaker 2: have only tried to save him, said the snow Queen.
[50:00] Speaker 2: But I do not have the magic of friendship, which
[50:05] Speaker 2: is the strongest of all. Gerda looked down at Kai.
[50:14] Speaker 2: He was her dearest friend in all the world. She
[50:19] Speaker 2: had no magic that she knew of, but she did
[50:24] Speaker 2: have love. She leaned down and whispered in his ear.
[50:32] Speaker 2: Wake up, Kai, She said, it's time to come home.
[50:41] Speaker 2: As she spoke, his eyelids fluttered open. After missing it
[50:49] Speaker 2: for so long, the warmth of her voice had melted
[50:55] Speaker 2: the speck of icy mirror. Kai looked up and instead
[51:04] Speaker 2: of seeing the snow Queen's face, he saw Gerda, and
[51:10] Speaker 2: his heart was filled with joy. He stood up and
[51:19] Speaker 2: took her hand, thanking her dearly. He couldn't wait to
[51:27] Speaker 2: return to their village in the Southern Lands. The snow
[51:33] Speaker 2: Queen commended Gerda for her bravery and will. This was
[51:41] Speaker 2: no casual trek for an ordinary person. She would miss
[51:49] Speaker 2: Kai's companionship, she said, but she was happy they would
[51:56] Speaker 2: be returning home where they were safe. Gerda looked back
[52:04] Speaker 2: at her new friends. The raven was patched on the
[52:09] Speaker 2: reindeer's shoulder and whispered in his ear. He nodded. We
[52:18] Speaker 2: have decided to stay, the reindeer said. After all, they
[52:27] Speaker 2: were creatures of this land, and everyone, even a snow queen,
[52:35] Speaker 2: needed friends. She invited them to stay with her in
[52:42] Speaker 2: the palace, and they gladly accepted. Kai and Gerda said
[52:53] Speaker 2: their goodbyes. The snow Queen, the raven, and the reindeer
[53:03] Speaker 2: went out into the courtyard to watch the pear leave
[53:09] Speaker 2: hand in hand for the south. Snowflakes flurried around them
[53:20] Speaker 2: like a veil, but none of them felt cold, for
[53:28] Speaker 2: their hearts were warm with the magic of friendship. As
[53:36] Speaker 2: the sapphire lights danced overhead
[54:01] Speaker 1: Up the dus

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